Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) looking to launch around 50 retail stores throughout The Bahamas by March 2012. The company will launch its new $42.8-million 4G network in New Providence at Christmas this year.

The newly privatized Bahamas Telecommunications Company (BTC) plans to open around 50 retail stores by the end of March 2012, giving customers easier access to products, calling plans and other services, according to BTC chief executive officer Geoff Houston.

Shops will be spread throughout The Bahamas, with the flagship store located at Marathon Mall on New Providence, which is expected to be open before the end of the year.

“We are designing the optimum shopping experience we feel will best suit the Bahamian market,” said Houston. “We will provide a new way of doing business, as we make ourselves more competitive and, most importantly, more focused on our customers.”

In addition to the new retail units, BTC is introducing a range of services over the coming months to improve connectivity in The Bahamas. The company will launch its new $42.8-million 4G network in New Providence at Christmas this year, with the Family Islands coming on stream over the next 18 months.

“We want to give the best technology and the best range of services we can to The Bahamas. We want to bring The Bahamas up to where it needs to be [in order] to be a competitive place to do business,” said Houston, who predicts that by 2020, 80 per cent of all access to the Internet will be through wireless devices.

Following successful trials in Coral Harbour, BTC will also begin rolling out its Next Generation Network (NGN) over the next three years to improve broadband performance and deliver speeds of up to 8MB per second. The company has so far invested $53 million in developing the new network.